Chapter 247 - 107: Targeted by the Blood Immortal Sect, Rescued by Emperor Xia

The broad-faced man muttered an incantation, channeling a continuous stream of Magical Power into the Treasure Bead before him. Instantly, the Barrier expanded, enveloping the entire painted boat.

For a short time, no one outside would notice anything amiss.

"This poison can disperse into the Spiritual Energy, causing cultivators to be temporarily paralyzed and fall unconscious, leaving them at our mercy..."

Emperor Xia noticed the strange mist drifting over. With a flick of her sleeve, an invisible wave pulsed outward, isolating all of the mist outside her private room.

Meanwhile, chaos erupted on the rest of the painted boat as a series of thuds echoed—people collapsing to the floor.

One after another, cultivators and courtesans who had yet to grasp the situation crumpled to the ground.

"Now’s the time."

The few remnants of the Blood Immortal Sect exchanged glances, their faces twisting into sinister smiles. They pushed open their door and strode toward Jiang Lan’s room on the third floor.

Seeing this, Emperor Xia’s eyes flickered with a peculiar light. She made no move, merely extending her Divine Sense to follow them.

The most magnificent and luxurious room on the third floor was shoved open. A strange fragrance filled the air. A group of graceful and charming women lay unconscious on the floor, and a man in white was passed out on a soft couch.

At this sight, the smiles on their faces grew even wider.

"As expected of you, Boss. The moment you make a move, the son of the Prime Minister’s Mansion is an easy catch," one of them praised, instantly recognizing the man on the couch as Jiang Lan.

The broad-faced man, their leader, sneered. "This is our Holy Sect’s Fuxiang Ten-Breath Collapse. It’s incredibly precious. Although not as good as the Three-Breath Collapse, it’s more than enough for this."

He had originally been wary, worried that Jiang Lan might be protected by other unknown experts or that he might have a few tricks up his sleeve.

But now, he could finally relax.

"Hurry up and take him away," he ordered.

A few men moved forward quickly. One of them summoned a Spirit Rope that glowed with a rosy light, preparing to bind Jiang Lan’s hands and feet.

Meanwhile, Emperor Xia, who had been observing the scene with her Divine Sense, narrowed her eyes. The corners of her lips curved into a smile of keen interest. ’Just as I expected...’

Inside the room, the expected scene of Jiang Lan being tied up did not happen.

With a dull BANG and a strangled cry, the man who had brought out the Spirit Rope was sent flying. His chest caved in, blood trickled from his lips, and who knows how many ribs were broken. He was gasping for his last breaths, clearly not long for this world.

Seeing this, the others’ expressions changed drastically. They grew cautious and vigilant, staring intently at the man in white who was now sitting up.

"Who are you people? Why did you poison and try to harm me?"

Jiang Lan sat up on the soft couch, patting the dust off his robes. He asked in a slow, deliberate manner, as if their attack was not at all surprising.

"How are you unharmed?"

The broad-faced man stared at him, finding it hard to believe.

He couldn’t understand why the Fuxiang Ten-Breath Collapse had no effect on him.

"I’ve been through plenty of assassination attempts like this. A single Antitoxic Bead is all it takes to deal with it. Why would I be in any trouble?" Jiang Lan looked at him as if he were an idiot.

"An Antitoxic Bead?"

The broad-faced man’s expression shifted again and again. He’d completely forgotten about that.

As the son of the Prime Minister’s Mansion, how could Jiang Lan possibly lack such a Heaven and Earth’s Wondrous Treasure?

However, what he found most unbelievable was Jiang Lan’s current strength.

Rumor had it that he was a good-for-nothing rich heir with no cultivation whatsoever, yet just now he had killed one of his Fourth Realm subordinates with a single palm strike.

"You really hide yourself well. All these years, you’ve been concealing your strength and biding your time," the broad-faced man said, his face turning sinister.

To be able to kill a Fourth Realm cultivator with one strike meant that Jiang Lan’s cultivation level had to be at least at the Fourth Realm, or even the Fifth Realm.

Jiang Lan let out a soft chuckle. "How could you tell I was hiding my strength? Can’t you see what my cultivation level is? Still, I should thank you for helping me test my current power. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have known I was already this strong..."

Emperor Xia had been paying close attention. When Jiang Lan attacked, she sensed the Spiritual Energy fluctuations in his body. At most, he was at the Qi Cultivation Realm, and perhaps not even that.

This meant that not long after Jiang Lan truly began cultivating, he was able to kill a Fourth Realm cultivator with a wave of his hand. When she first started her own cultivation, her progress had been only about the same.

But back then, she had been blessed with Dragon Energy and the National Fortune.

’That aura fluctuation just now... was that really the Immortal Embryo?’

Emperor Xia’s heart sank slightly as she realized the source of Jiang Lan’s incredible power.

In the grotto-heaven left behind by Purple Mist True Monarch, there was a Heaven and Earth Wonder called Immortal Embryo Creation Dew, which had deep ties to the Immortal Phoenix Race. Jiang Lan must have obtained it.

Considering that the Prime Minister had recently been seeking out many items related to the Phoenix Race for him, she could guess a thing or two.

The broad-faced man didn’t argue. He said in a low voice, "So it’s true. You’re the one behind the Naxian Alliance. You’ve hidden yourself so deeply. We will capture you today, no matter what."

"The Naxian Alliance?"

Jiang Lan was genuinely surprised, then he smiled faintly. "This is the first time I’ve heard that name. But more importantly, I’d like to know who sent you."

"Or could it be that Emperor Xia finally lost her patience and decided to test me?"

Hearing this, Emperor Xia’s eyes narrowed slightly, and the jade-like hand behind her back tightened its grip.

She had been about to intervene and save Jiang Lan. After all, if something happened to him at this critical juncture, the Prime Minister’s Mansion would certainly not let the matter rest.

They might later suspect the Royal Family was behind it. If the Prime Minister’s Mansion threw caution to the wind and flipped the table, the situation in Great Xia would descend into even greater chaos, and she would find it very difficult to maintain control.

But Jiang Lan’s words made her change her mind slightly. She decided to let him suffer a little first.

Even if she were to test him, she would never resort to such despicable methods.

The broad-faced man hadn’t expected Jiang Lan to suspect the Royal Family. He sneered, "Heh, don’t ask questions you shouldn’t. If you know what’s good for you, you’ll surrender without a fight..."

But before the word "fight" even left his lips, he was in motion. A sharp, broad saber shimmering with emerald light appeared in his hand. Accompanied by the sound of wind and thunder, he slashed directly at Jiang Lan.

At the same time, his subordinates saw their chance and attacked as well, summoning their own various weapons.

Instantly, the private room was filled with the splendid glow of treasures and overflowing with tyrannical auras. Even the Array carved into the room couldn’t withstand the pressure and immediately shattered.

Emperor Xia’s eyes narrowed. She wanted to test Jiang Lan’s true strength, so she acted directly, suppressing the energy fluctuations in the area so they wouldn’t leak outside the Barrier.

"Looking at your techniques, they’re quite similar to the Blood Immortal Sect remnants who tried to assassinate me before."

"I doubt Emperor Xia would be foolish enough to use such a method to test me. So, you must be from the Blood Immortal Sect, then?"

Jiang Lan fought back, tangling with the assassins while trying to break out of the painted boat.

"Heh heh, why don’t you guess..."

The broad-faced man slashed with his saber. A vast wave of blade energy shot across the air like a brilliant river, cutting off Jiang Lan’s escape route with its bone-chilling, overwhelmingly powerful presence.

Seemingly unable to dodge, Jiang Lan could only strike one of the men in the chest, sending him flying and coughing up blood.

But the broad-faced man’s saber was already descending, about to cleave him from behind. If nothing interfered, the blow would slice his back open, leaving him dead or maimed.

BANG!!!

Just then, the Void blurred. A hand, as pale and smooth as jade, appeared and blocked the attack, producing a sonorous clang like metal striking stone.

Sparks even flew through the Void.

A fair-skinned woman appeared out of thin air. Her face was impassive. With a casual palm strike, she shattered the broad saber.

The broad-faced man, his face a mask of disbelief, was thrown back by the terrifying rebound force. He let out a muffled grunt as shattered blade fragments plunged into his chest, and he fell to the ground, covered in blood.

His companions, their faces filled with terror, saw that things had gone wrong and tried to flee. But they too were dispatched by Emperor Xia with a few casual palm strikes, killed instantly on the spot.

"Who are you?"

The broad-faced man was a Fifth Realm cultivator, after all, with a tenacious Life Force. He wasn’t dead yet. Blood poured from his mouth, his eyes filled with disbelief and terror.

Emperor Xia looked at his blood-soaked form with a hint of disgust. She had been about to perform a Soul Search.

"Don’t even think about it..."

But the broad-faced man guessed her intention. A mocking sneer appeared on his lips as a Restriction in his Sea of Consciousness activated. With a BANG, his head exploded, and he died instantly.